34 



NARRATIVE OF A 



after taking leave of the Commandant and the captain, I 

 went on board the little schooner, and we set sail for 

 Balize. 



The wind, at the commencement, was fair and moderate, 

 but in the course of the night grew fresher and stronger, 

 till it almost blew a gale. We had a boat astern, too large 

 to be taken on board of our small vessel. As it was towed 

 rapidly along, it soon rilled with water, and we were obliged 

 every two or three hours to heave to and bale it out. 

 During one of these operations the schooner was suddenly 

 struck by a gust of wind, and the main boom snapped in 

 the middle. One of the broken ends was borne down the 

 companion- way , but was fortunately prevented by the lad- 

 der from reaching the cabin, where I was lying. A mo- 

 ment after we shipped a sea. In the mean time the main- 

 sail was flapping violently in the wind, and as the night 

 was of pitchy darkness, some confusion ensued before mat- 

 ters could be arranged. The first thing done was to cut 

 away the boat ; the boom was then spliced by means of a 

 couple of oars, and our little craft, being again put before 

 the wind as our course required, was borne over the water 

 even more swiftly than before. 



In about forty-eight hours after leaving Truxillo, we 

 were in soundings, and navigating in smooth water in an 

 archipelago of keys, or islets, covered with verdure. We 

 soon after came to anchor before the town of Balize, the 

 situation of which is so low, that the houses seem rising 

 out of the sea. The place had a neat and pretty appear- 

 ance, and contrasted strongly with the old fashioned town 

 I had just quitted on the other side of the bay. 



We arrived on the afternoon of May the 4th. Towards 

 evening I went on shore ; and on my inquiring where lodg- 

 ings could be procured, was directed to a sort of boarding- 

 house, the only establishment in the place for the accom- 

 modation of strangers, and one of the meanest that can well 

 be imagined. It may seem surprising that a populous 

 English town should not be provided with a single hotel 



